My Week that Was - February 21

Platteville bike shop. 2/14/26 dwm

 Saturday morning we headed to Platteville to check out stores we'd not seen in a while and take advantage of a beautiful and unseasonably warm February day.

 At the Popcorn Kernel, on the corner of Bronson and Main streets, we bought a bag of cookies and cream popcorn and a four pack of Platteville Root Beer. 

 You can read more about our day trip in last Sunday's blog.

 I started a new book over the weekend. It was distributed at a leadership team meeting titled, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, by Patrick Lencioni.

 It's a quick-read focused on bringing people together so if there are disagreements and conflict, that everyone is still rowing the boat in the same direction. By Saturday night, I was half-way thru the book.

 It's been an amazing stretch of above normal temperatures. It was in the 50s over the weekend and Monday was the warmest February 16th in weather history.

Snow is melting fast! 2/16/2026 dwm

I wore the lightest jacket to work, recognizing it would be warmer in the afternoon when I wouldn't want to be over-dressed. 

I put on the jacket to go to lunch, but left the zipper down. After a short walk, I left the jacket in the car and it was still comfortable. 

This is nice respite from weeks of cold, especially when there are still 30 days before spring. 

We aren't done with cold, but it feels good for it to be warm outside, even if it's for just a few days.

Primary election in WI. 2/17/26 dwm

 Tuesday was election day in our community, it was an election trimming three candidates to two in the race for circuit judge.

 As I like to do, I was at the poll before other voters arrived. I was first in line at 7 when voting opened. I checked in, showing my I.D. and signing in before picking up a ballot. Then I stood at table where I filled in a circle, and dropped the ballot into the machine.

 I like being among the first to vote because it gets me to work faster. Tuesday, though, I heard the man supervising the ballot counter say I was the first person to vote in Dane County. I don't know if I was or not, but that's pretty cool.

Wednesday was a two-campus day. The morning was on the west campus where I welcomed a new colleague, had a team meeting, made some calls, and worked on an article. I drove to the east campus for a 1:30 visit, but when I knocked on the door, there was no answer. There wasn't an answer the second or third time either. 

I'll wait a few weeks to see if the business card I left leads to a call, if not, I'll try again to make an appointment. The 2:30 visit went well.

It was 60 degrees on Monday. Friday, snow and rain were in the forecast. We had less than a trace of snow in Madison, but not many miles away, there was a quite a bit of snow. Like the saying goes, if you don't like the weather in Wisconsin, wait a few minutes.

It was a busy week, thankfully I wrapped up several projects and am ready to move on to next week.  I hope your next week goes well!